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Burford is situated in north Oxfordshire, twenty miles north of Oxford, and is considered the southern gateway to the Cotswolds. A beautiful
old Cotswold town, its High Street sloping from the high Wolds, where you have beautiful views over the open countryside, down to the
willow fringed River Windrush in the pretty Windrush valley. A fine three arched medieval bridge crosses the river at the foot of the hill.
To stand at the top of Burford High Street and look down at all the
splendid houses and pretty cottages is like looking at a town from a storybook. Some of these old golden stone houses have seen the
events of centuries, for some date back to the 15th and 16th centuries and remain unaltered in appearance; the Bear Inn and
Crown Inn, the Old Bull Hotel and Bay Tree Hotel are all of this period.
The Bull however, like several other properties in Burford was given a
new faade in Georgian times. Another example of this practice is The Great House in Witney Street. The fine four gabled house by the river
is from the 16th century, built by Simon Wysdom. He left it to the Grammar School. Nearby are the old Almshouses, which were rebuilt in
1823. The Priory was a famous Elizabethan house, rebuilt in the early 1800's, which retains its Tudor gables and heraldic arms above the
doorway. The Priory was owned by William Lenthall, Speaker to the Long Parliament and famous for defying Charles I.
Like other fine towns in the Cotswolds, Burford's wealth came from
wool during the 14th-17th centuries. The wool merchants held their meetings in the 'Tolsay', situated in the middle of the High Street.
Today this quaint old building houses an interesting little museum.
The Parish Church St. John the Baptist is one of the largest in Oxfordshire. The Church still has its original west doorway and Norman
tower, now capped with a slender steeple of the 15th century; most of the present day building dates from that period. The Church has a
fine fan-vaulted ceiling and five medieval screens dividing various chapels. There is an ornate tomb in the North Chapel to Sir Lawrence
Tanfield, Lord Chief Justice and the religiously divided Tanfield family.
There is a footpath from the bridge leading westward, which takes you
on a pleasant quiet walk along the banks of the River Windrush, where you can appreciate the beauty of rural Oxfordshire.
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Local Information
- Information Centre: The Old Brewery, Sheep St. OX18 4LP Tel: 01993 823558
- Post Office: 83 High St. OX18 4QA Tel: 01993 822146
- Fire, Police, Ambulance in an emergency dial 999
- Police: Witney Tel: 01993 703913
- Hospital:
- John Radcliffe (Casualty Dept), Headley Way, Headington, Oxford Tel: 01865 741166
- Travel:
- Bus:Stagecoach and Oxford Tube timetables and online ticket shop.
- Airport: Oxford Airport, Kidlington Tel: 01865 841213
- Local newspapers:
- Oxford Times (Fri), Osney Mead, Oxford Tel: 01865 244988
- Oxford Mail (Daily), Osney Mead, Oxford Tel: 01865 244988
- The Star (Thu), Osney Mead, Oxford Tel: 01865 244988
- Local Radio & TV:
- Central Television, Unit 9, Windrush Court, Abingdon Tel: 01235 554123
- FOX FM, Brush House, Pony Road, Oxford Tel: 01865 748787
- BBC Radio Oxford 95.2 FM, 269 Banbury Road, Oxford Tel: 01865 311444
- Local Council Offices:
- West Oxfordshire District Council, Council Offices, Wood Green, Witney. OX8 6NB Tel: 01993 702941
- Oxfordshire County Council, County Hall, New Road, Oxford, OX1 1ND Tel: 01865 792422
- Worship
- Burford Quakers, The Religious Society of Friends,
Pytts Lane, Burford. Meeting Sunday, 11am with Children's Class Tel: 01993 702518
Recreation, Sport & Leisure
- Golf:
- Burford Golf Club, Swindon Road, Burford, Oxon, OX18 4JG Tel: 01993 822583
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